Ruth Perry: Ofsted plans training to spot ‘visible signs of anxiety’

Ofsted has announced plans to train all inspectors on dealing with anxious staff and when to pause visits after the Ruth Perry inquest reached its conclusion.

Chief inspector Amanda Spielman has apologised to the family of headteacher Ruth Perry, after an inquest into her death recorded a verdict of suicide, contributed to by an Ofsted inspection.

From next week, a new complaints hotline will be set up for education settings to report any concerns about their inspection to a senior Ofsted official.

Spielman said Ofsted had already “made changes to the way we work” and “we will do more”, also pledging to “work hard to address” each concern raised by the coroner.

School inspections planned for next week will be delayed by a day as lead school inspectors are called for an urgent briefing. This session will be schools-focussed, with inspections of FE providers going ahead as planned.

But, there will be wider training inspectors across all of Ofsted’s remits.

Spielman said: “The coroner highlighted a number of areas of concern. We will work hard to address each of these as soon as we can, and we are starting that work straight away.

“We have started to develop training for all inspectors on recognising and responding to visible signs of anxiety.

“It’s right that we inspect first and foremost in the interests of children, their parents and carers. But in the light of Mrs Perry’s sad death, it’s also vital that we do all we can to minimise stress and anxiety when we inspect.”

The coroner in the inquest into the death of Perry warned there is a “risk of future deaths if there is only lip service paid to learning from tragedies like this”.

Heidi Connor, who concluded Perry died in January by suicide, contributed to by an Ofsted inspection, plans to issue a “regulation 28” report aimed at preventing future deaths, and urged education secretary Gillian Keegan not to ignore its findings.

She said she hoped her conclusions and report “will be used by the parliamentary inquiry process to review how inspection should work going forward”.

Keegan said the government would “consider further changes to make sure we have an inspection system that supports schools and teachers, and ultimately secure Ruth’s legacy”.

Perry was headteacher at Caversham Primary School in Berkshire when it was rated ‘inadequate’ by inspectors following the visit last autumn.

Under regulation 28, coroners have a “duty to make reports to a person, organisation, local authority or government department or agency where the coroner believes that action should be taken to prevent future deaths”.

Connor said she wanted to “consider the statistics about responses to these reports by government departments”.

But she told Perry’s family “Ruth is not a statistic to me, so please forgive me for mentioning this point briefly”. 

She pointed to a “preventable deaths tracker”, created by an Oxford epidemiologist, which “shows a tendency for some secretaries of state to ignore coroners’ regulation 28 reports”.

“I very much hope that will not be the case here.”

System ‘not weighed against teacher welfare’

The report will highlight seven areas of concern for Ofsted and the Department for Education, including the “impact on leader welfare that this system will continue to have”. 

Connor said “any form of inspection or review will always be inherently stressful”, and that she had “taken that into account in reaching my conclusions”. She added that “nobody would dispute that safeguarding is important”.

But she warned transparency and “ease of message to parents” was “not currently weighed against teacher welfare. The benefits are focused on without taking account of the risks.”

She also noted an “almost complete absence” of Ofsted training or published policies on dealing with signs of distress in leaders during inspections.

Ofsted has been repeatedly criticised for its response to Perry’s death. Last month, Spielman claimed critics had used the tragedy “as a pivot to try and discredit” Ofsted’s work.

Connor said Ofsted’s “approach has been to make public statements in court, setting out their view on whether Ruth’s death was linked to the inspection and how it was carried out”.

“They have publicly described this tragedy as a pivot, used to try and discredit what Ofsted does. This is without any attempt to analyse the evidence more carefully. There is a risk of future deaths if there is only lip service paid to learning from tragedies like this.”

Keegan will consider ‘further changes’

Keegan said Ofsted was “fundamental to making sure children are safe and receive the education they deserve”.

“Together we will look closely at the coroner’s recommendations to consider further changes to make sure we have an inspection system that supports schools and teachers, and ultimately secure Ruth’s legacy.”

She added that “my heart goes out to Ruth’s family, friends and the school community. Her death was a tragedy that not only shocked the local community but also the wider sector and beyond.”

Samaritans are available 365 days a year. You can reach them on free call number 116 123, email them at jo@samaritans.org or visit www.samaritans.org to find your nearest branch.

Education Support runs a confidential helpline for education staff and teachers – call 08000 562 561. 

MOVERS AND SHAKERS: EDITION 445

Paul Freeman

Commercial Director, Apprentify Group

Start date: November 2023

Previous job: Managing Director, Global Knowledge Apprenticeships (GKA)

Interesting fact: Paul is a fan of martial arts. Trained in Tae Kwon Do, Paul has earned himself a black belt in the sport.

Julie Lappin

Executive Director, Greater Manchester Learning Provider Network

Start date: January 2024

Previous job: Director of Operations, Total People and MOL (part of LTE Group)

Interesting fact: When not working as a qualified football coach, Julie can be found either coaching, watching her sons play football or cheering on her beloved Manchester United at Old Trafford

Birmingham college recovers after four ‘requires improvement’ results

A Birmingham college is celebrating a “turning point” with a ‘good’ Ofsted result after four consecutive ‘requires improvement’ judgments.

Birmingham Metropolitan College has gone through a turbulent period since entering government intervention in 2015 after serious financial issues came to light.

In the same year the college was downgraded to ‘requires improvement’ by Ofsted. It was then handed that same grade in further full inspections in 2017, 2018 and 2022.

The college was upgraded to ‘good’ in a report published today that praised a “culture that promotes diversity and inclusivity”, well-sequenced curriculums, and overall “high-quality provision”.

Pat Carvalho, principal of BMet since 2019, said this “significant achievement” marked a “milestone” and “turning point” in the college’s journey.

“This ‘good’ rating is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our entire team who have been tirelessly working to enhance every aspect of our college, and it’s gratifying to see our efforts come to fruition,” she said.

“We are all quite simply thrilled, this is not just an Ofsted rating; it’s a milestone on our journey to ensuring we provide high-quality education and training for our students, apprentices and the wider community.”

The college has three sites and teaches 4,725 young people, 166 learners with high needs, 2,916 adult learners and 736 apprentices.

Ofsted said learners and apprentices find college campuses to be “safe and respectful environments, which are inclusive and welcoming”. Leaders and managers have created a culture that promotes diversity and inclusivity.

They learn in “well-resourced, high-quality and industry-standard classrooms and workshops”, and “most” teachers are “appropriately qualified and have high levels of industry experience”.

Governors are “confident and constructive in their engagement with the executive team”, Ofsted found, adding that governors “are aware of the college’s weaknesses and support leaders’ actions to rectify these”.

Leaders have also implemented “effective subcontracting arrangements to ensure a high-quality provision”. They “maintain close oversight and undertake detailed scrutiny of all subcontractor work through robust quality assurance and monitoring arrangements,” inspectors said.

BMet entered government intervention in 2015 after it racked up £14 million in exceptional financial support and debts of £23.4 million. Its 2022 Ofsted inspection found the college’s long-term structural and financial issues were now resolved.

However, its accounts for 2022 show a £3.38 million deficit – mostly caused by the write-off of several assets due to refurbishment costs dating back several years – and that its financial health rating dropped from ‘good’ back into ‘requires improvement’.

However, the college plans to improve back to ‘good’ financial health in 2023/24 due to “improved cash generation”, the accounts added.

5 things we learned from Keegan’s education committee hearing

The government won’t confirm its deadline to rid every school and college of crumbly RAAC until the new year, Gillian Keegan has said.

The education secretary said she would not give a “definitive date” until mitigations to make every education setting safe were complete, adding that her department “expects there to be more” cases identified.

Keegan made the statement during a hearing with MPs on the House of Commons education committee today, in which she was also quizzed on the Department for Education’s guidance on gender recognition, proposals for the new Advanced British Standard and teacher recruitment in further education.

Here are five takeaways from the session:

RAAC: ‘We expect there’s more’

The DfE confirmed 231 schools and colleges have potentially dangerous crumbling RAAC concrete, in an update published this morning. 

The total added three more FE colleges to the list: Abingdon and Witney College, Barnet and Southgate College and The Oldham College. Ten colleges have now partially closed campuses due to RAAC.

Keegan told MPs the DfE has received all questionnaires back from every education setting but expects they will identify more schools and colleges with RAAC as they further investigate.

“They’ve all had the first survey and 231 currently have confirmed RAAC. Now we do expect there will be some more because as we go back for follow up survey work, we will identify a few more,” Keegan told MPs.

She added that she won’t give a deadline to rid every school and college of crumbly RAAC until the new year.

“We will be able to give you a definitive date when all schools are safe because that was my very first objective.”

Pressed by MPs, Keegan said this would be “very shortly”, but not before Christmas, calling the expected announcement a “new year present”.

Gender recognition guidance due ‘before Christmas’

The education secretary also said the long-awaited guidance on transgender learners in schools and colleges will “hopefully” be published before the Christmas period.

The “gender questioning” guidance was previously due to be released earlier this summer.

“We had to change that because it is quite a complex area,” Keegan explained.

She added that the guidance will be non-statutory as the department has been “going backwards and forwards and trying to understand how these various layers of law will fit together”.

She indicated that the guidance would cover how colleges can support learners who want to socially transition, as a ban on students socially transitioning at school/college would require changing equalities law.

“I know there’s been other people who’ve called for not having any social transitioning in schools, full stop,” she said. “That would require a change in equalities law and that will be a matter for the equalities minister.”

ABS consultation expected ‘shortly’

Since prime minister Rishi Sunak announced his intention to replace A-levels and T Levels with the Advanced British Standard, MPs and sector leaders have awaited a consultation setting out the details of the new proposed qualification.

Keegan told MPs today that the document, which contains plans for 10 years’ worth of reform, will be released “shortly”. 

The three things it will detail will be having “more breadth in 16 to 18” and extending the timetable of 16- to 18-year-olds in school and college.

The third detail will describe the “breakdown” of the so-called artificial barrier between technical and academic education. 

She added that the document will also expand on the work from the DfE’s maths advisory group.

Upon questions of scepticism of the replacement of the relatively new T Levels, Keegan insisted T Levels will be used as the building blocks of the ABS.

DfE ‘doesn’t underestimate’ the T Level placements ‘task’

Keegan was also pressed on the difficulty of getting businesses to host T Level work placements.

Labour MP Ian Mearns referenced DfE’s own 2022 employer polls showing that not enough businesses are interested in offering industry placements.

Keegan disagreed and added that the department is working with businesses “more and more” but admitted the T Level nine-week work placement has been a “big challenge”.

“The skill shortage in a way kind of helps us and actually, even some of the changes to immigration yesterday, because it basically says to businesses, we have to all work together to develop the pipeline of talent,” she said.

She added: “When there are particular skill shortages, companies do tend to get a bit more strategic and look to try and build the pipeline. T Levels and workplaces are an excellent way of doing that as are apprenticeships because they broaden access to lots and lots of different people. 

“We don’t underestimate the task. I don’t. But I think it’s the right challenge.”

Keegan ‘aware’ of FE recruitment crisis 

During a grilling on the recruitment and retention crisis in school education, conservative MP Robin Walker argued that the recruitment in the post-16 space is “significantly greater”. 

Keegan said she is aware of the challenges, but she doesn’t have a large role in setting salaries for FE staff.

“We don’t have as much role in the setting of the salaries and the scales, but we have provided an additional £470 million across the financial year 2023/24 and 2025/26, to support colleges and other providers with recruitment and retention challenges,” she said.

“We’ve also got the stem and technical shortage subjects will receive those working in disadvantaged schools and colleges in particular, will receive up to £6,000 after tax annually on top of their pay.”

She also skirted questions from committee member Miriam Cates on the recruitment of maths teachers, given the government wants to extend maths education until 18.

Provider that trains 5 apprentices judged ‘inadequate’

An apprenticeship provider that trains just five apprentices has been judged ‘inadequate’ by Ofsted after inspectors found tutors offering no direct vocational teaching.

Astro Martin Ltd, based in Croydon, began offering the level 2 customer service practitioner apprenticeship to a single employer in Oldham in February 2022.

But inspectors, who conducted a full inspection of the firm in October, found that leaders started teaching the course “without having the staffing expertise to do this effectively”.

The provider was dealt the lowest possible rating from the watchdog in a report published today, which said apprentices are “left too much to their own devices to complete their apprenticeship”.

Tutors require apprentices to complete their apprenticeship through workbooks, which they check at monthly intervals, but they “do not do any direct in-person or online teaching of the vocational aspects of the course” and do not “provide apprentices with feedback on their work”.

“This results in apprentices not knowing what they need to do to improve, or knowing whether they are meeting the standard necessary to pass the end-point assessment,” the report said.

Tutors do, however, support apprentices “well” to achieve qualifications in English and maths and to “prepare for their next career step”.

‘Leaders do not know what actions they need to take to improve’

Companies House shows that Astro Martin Ltd was incorporated in 2013. Its website claims the firm “specialises” in work-based training and vocational qualifications, and has a “proven track record of successfully delivering quality training and development to organisations and individuals”.

Ofsted’s report said leaders and managers have an “overly positive view” of the quality of their provision and are “not evaluative enough in their self-assessment”.

Leaders were criticised for failing to work with employers to make sure that what apprentices learn in off-the job training aligns adequately with their job roles.

Tutors also do not liaise with the apprentices’ employer to “plan the training so that it meets the needs of the employer”.

Instead, they rely on workbooks that are based on the order in which the knowledge, skills, and behaviours are listed in the apprenticeship standard – they “do not adjust this to suit the employer’s or apprentices’ needs”.

There is also “little or no alignment of the training that apprentices complete with the activities that they do as part of their job”, leaving apprentices with “limited ability to apply what they have learned in the workplace and ensure that their knowledge is secure”.

Ofsted criticised tutors for requiring all apprentices to work through the same series of workbooks in the same order, regardless of the prior knowledge or skills they have.

“This contributes to apprentices making slow progress and lacking the motivation to complete their course,” inspectors warned.

The report said leaders “do not have any external oversight of the quality of their provision to help them to have an objective view,” adding that this “means there is no challenge to leaders and managers on the quality of the apprenticeship programme”.

“Leaders do not know what actions they need to take to improve,” the report concluded.

The Education and Skills Funding Agency typically terminates the funding contracts for independent training providers if they receive a grade four from Ofsted.

Astro Martin Ltd did not respond to requests for comment.

‘Underutilised’ college campus to reopen as specialist high needs centre

An “underutilised” college campus that was controversially closed this autumn is set to reopen next year as a specialist centre for young people who have high needs.

The Sheffield College has announced plans to refurbish its Peaks Campus and retain it for educational purposes.

Its local community and MP Clive Betts voiced discontent over the sudden decision to shut the site earlier this year as it would leave the area with no further education offer. The college said the decision was necessary due to rising costs in a difficult financial climate.

The campus had around 300 students at the time of closure, against a capacity of almost 800, who studied a range of courses including games design, health and social care, public services and science courses, apprenticeships and the Prince’s Trust programme.

It will now be transformed into a centre solely focussed on provision for 16 to 24-year-olds who have high needs and require specialist support to progress, with a capacity of 300 students.

The college said it will partner with Sheffield City Council for the project after both identified a “vital and growing requirement” in the city and wider region for further post-16 high-needs places.

Principal and chief executive Angela Foulkes said: “We are delighted that Peaks Campus will be retained for educational purposes and will continue to play a vital role in the community and city, and that we have a long-term sustainable solution for the site.

“The transformation of the campus into a new facility that young people and the city needs will ensure that no one is left behind and enable us to provide more places for students who have high needs.

Clive Betts MP welcomed the move.

He said: “When Sheffield College announced they were closing their Peaks Campus I was clear that under no circumstances should the building simply be left empty and unused.

“Like the rest of the country Sheffield faces huge pressures on SEND provision and supporting young people with specific needs. This plan will be a big step in helping address that and I want to make sure we can have the campus reopened in this capacity as soon as possible.”

The college said the new centre will provide additional capacity for high-needs students from September 2024 rather than replacing existing provision.

New facilities will include adaptations to the building to meet the needs of the students such as quiet spaces, sensory rooms and an independent living suite, according to a spokesperson.

Student recruitment to the new centre will be phased and start with 100 places being offered.

Councillor Dawn Dale, chair of Sheffield City Council’s education, children and families policy committee, said: “We are pleased that The Sheffield College want to develop Peaks Campus in this way. The Sheffield College and the council recognise the growing numbers of children and young people with Special Educational Needs and are taking action to support them.”

RAAC: 3 more colleges with crumbly concrete confirmed

Three more colleges have confirmed cases of crumbly RAAC concrete on their campuses, the Department for Education said today. 

An extra 18 education institutions have been added to the DfE’s updated list of affected schools and colleges, bringing the total to 231. 

There are now 10 colleges, including one specialist college, with confirmed cases of the potentially dangerous crumbly concrete.

Abingdon and Witney College, Barnet and Southgate College and The Oldham College are the latest colleges to join the list. 

The data states that students at Barnet and Southgate College and The Oldham College remain in face-to-face to education. At Abingdon at Witney, a “triage process” is in place. Details published today are accurate as of November 27.

RAAC was found in The Oldham College’s Grange Theatre, but the building has not been in use for two years so has had no impact on learning.

Four schools have now been removed from the list since October after initial tests showed the material was not present in buildings.

Essex remains the worst affected area, with 63 settings affected. 

The most common “mitigation” in place is all students being in face-to-face education, on-site in other buildings or “nearby”, affecting 98 per cent of settings on the list.

Previously reported colleges with RAAC confirmed in their buildings include Grantham College, Farnborough College of Technology, Marple Sixth Form College – part of The Trafford College Group, Petroc, Camborne College – part of Cornwall College Group, Peterborough College – part of Inspire Education Group and Royal College Manchester (Seashell Trust).

First T Levels relicensing tender launched

Awarding bodies are being invited to bid for contracts to “refresh and develop” seven existing T Levels.

The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education yesterday launched the competitive relicensing process, dubbed “Generation 2”, for most T Levels that were part of the wave one and two rollout.

However, three of those T Levels – offered by NCFE in health, healthcare science and science – have been left out. All of those qualifications suffered with well-publicised issues which led to results being regraded in their first year. Various changes have been made to the content of the T Levels over the past year to make them fit for purpose.

FE Week understands that a separate relicensing process for the health and science T Levels will be conducted at a later date.

Each T Level typically has a five-year license attached to them. The procurement launched this week will decide whether the awarding body currently assigned to each early T Level will continue with its development, or whether it will be switched to another.

NCFE delivers three of the seven T Levels part of this tender, while Pearson & City and Guilds are responsible for two each. The contracts are worth £28,093,974 in total.

T Level nameCurrent AOContract value
Education and Early YearsNCFE
£5,526,068
Design, Surveying and Planning for ConstructionPearson£3,426,668
Building Services Engineering for ConstructionCity & Guilds£3,962,768
Onsite ConstructionCity & Guilds£3,902,468
Digital Business ServicesNCFE£2,786,268
Digital Support ServicesNCFE£3,789,868
Digital Production, Development and DesignPearson£4,699,868

A spokesperson for the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education said the chosen Generation 2 suppliers will be “expected to refresh and develop the content and assessment methods”.

The bidding process, overseen by IfATE, will comprise of two stages. The first closes later this month and those that successfully pass will progress to stage two to complete their bid submission by early 2024.

Chris Morgan, IfATE’s deputy director for commercial, said: “This exciting opportunity will see the first two waves of T Levels, rolled out from 2020, going back to market for bidding in three key sectors. We welcome widespread interest and look forward to receiving submissions from awarding organisations.”

The IfATE spokesperson pressed that T Levels will “underpin” the technical options within the government’s long-term plans for the new Advanced British Standard (ABS), announced by the prime minister in October.

Plans for the ABS, which will effectively combine T Levels and A-levels into one standalone qualification, will be developed over the next decade.

T Levels will, in the meantime, “remain the gold standard employer-shaped technical qualification at level 3 for 16- to 19-year-olds”, the IfATE spokesperson claimed, adding that it is “vital that the Generation 2 qualifications are refreshed and developed to the highest standard”.

Ofsted: First ‘outstanding’ for Burton and South Derbyshire College

Burton and South Derbyshire College has been awarded top marks across the board from Ofsted.

The medium-sized general FE college received ‘outstanding’ grades in every category for creating a “high performing culture” and “exceptionally strong” relationships between teachers and students as well as employers.

This is the first ever grade one for Burton and South Derbyshire College and follows a previous ‘good’ judgment in 2017 and ‘requires improvement’ the year prior.

Chief executive Dawn Ward said the college was “delighted that the hard work, passion, dedication and commitment of all college staff to serve our learners and industry partners has been recognised in this result”, but added that she is “very conscious that it’s at a point in time”.

“We are therefore focused on continuing to serve our communities and working hand in hand with our industry, education and voluntary partners to nurture the talent of the future,” Ward added.

Inspectors visited the college in October when it had 1,724 learners on level 1 to 3 programmes, 684 adult learners and 86 learners with high needs. The college also operates a construction academy and specialist apprenticeship development centre for level 2 and 3 engineering and manufacturing apprenticeships for Toyota Manufacturing UK.

The watchdog found that learners benefit from “high-quality teaching” and have plentiful academic resources and extra-curricular activities.

These activities include construction skills certification scheme cards, participating in international work experience, exchange placements, and opportunities to participate in WorldSkills competitions.

“Collectively these activities successfully support learners and apprentices to make informed decisions about their futures and career aspirations,” the report said.

Ofsted praised the “exceptionally strong” relationships between teachers, learners and apprentices.

Inspectors said learners have excellent attitudes to learning and are considerate of each other, their teachers and visitors to the college.

The college was also found to deliver “well planned and carefully crafted support” for learners who have experienced difficulties and/or trauma in their lives, such as care leavers and those with mental health difficulties.

In Ofsted’s new remit to examine whether colleges are meeting local skills needs, Burton and South Derbyshire College was found to be making a ‘strong’ contribution through its “highly productive” partnerships with employer representative groups, civic and community organisations and other key agency partners.

“For example, as part of a seven-college partnership, leaders at BSDC contributed to the curriculum design and development of a digital literacy and capability programme to enhance the information technology skills of learners across Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire,” the report said.

Pastoral and academic support were found to be “outstanding”. The watchdog found that tutorial provision is structured around the ‘BE’ model of BE Tutorial; BE Independent; BE Social. This allowed learners to develop a precise understanding of life in modern contemporary society and their role in advocating democratic principles, such as the importance of celebrating differences and treating each other as equals.

Ofsted also found that the leadership and governance of BSDC have created a “high performing culture” which brings out the best in everyone, where staff feel valued and morale is high.

“Leaders have a clear sense of purpose in meeting the educational and skills needs of the communities and industry-related sectors that the college seeks to serve,” inspectors said.

Teachers ensure foundation learning components are taught early in the course and are “highly adept” at ensuring learning increases in complexity over time.

“They are excellent role models, providing inspiration, motivation and challenging learners and apprentices to do their best at all times. Teachers integrate English and mathematics effectively into almost all lessons,” inspectors praised.